On the night of December 3rd, the Trail Blazers hosted the Phoenix Suns, and Gan Guoyang returned to the team.
Without Kobe on the outside, the pressure of leading the offensive attack fell on Gan Guoyang once more, but he was already used to it.
Moreover, the Trail Blazers won the last game without Gan Guoyang and Kobe, so with Gan Guoyang back this time, winning against the Suns shouldn’t be a problem.
However, the situation was unexpectedly different. The Phoenix Suns played a spectacular game at the Rose Garden Arena, exploding on offense and defeating the Trail Blazers 111-103, with an 8-point lead.
This left Gan Guoyang in an awkward position—without him they won, but with him they lost?
Back in the locker room post-game, Carl couldn’t help but joke, "Sonny, maybe you should take a couple more days off?"
Even Gan Guoyang laughed. He actually performed well tonight, with 30 points, 14 rebounds, and 7 assists, quite an impressive performance.
But the Trail Blazers couldn’t stop the Suns’ relentless offense tonight, which was the key reason for their loss.
Especially in terms of perimeter defense, the absence of Kobe revealed just how numerous the gaps were in the Trail Blazers’ defense.
The Suns, as a team, manage to rise again every few years, much like the Phoenix itself.
Years ago, after Barkley left, the Phoenix Suns were in a rebuilding phase, with not much in their hands.
In 1997, the Suns sent Steve Nash to the Celtics in exchange for Antoine Walker, beginning the process of building a roster around Walker.
In the 1999 draft, the Suns secured Shawn Marion, quickly packaged him with Tom Gugliotta plus draft picks, and sent them to the Detroit Pistons, acquiring the Pistons’ superstar Grant Hill.
This trade in the summer of 1999 caused a stir because Hill, the Pistons’ star player and a budding young talent in the league, was considered to have limitless potential.
The Pistons had always said they wanted to build the team around Hill, but when it came to discussing contract renewal in 1999, with one year left on the contract, they suddenly decided to trade him to Phoenix, which was baffling.
Hill had just gotten married that summer, completing a major life event, and as a Duke graduate and traditional player, he had planned to end his career in Detroit, with his number 33 jersey hanging in the rafters of The Palace of Auburn Hills.
But Hill never expected that his old teammate Joe Dumars, who had just retired in May 1999 and became the Pistons’ general manager in June, made his first trade by sending Hill away.
Hill finally realized the reality and harshness of the NBA, but fortunately Phoenix was a good place for him.
The climate here is dry, and the abundant sunshine greatly aids the recovery of his injury-prone body.
After acquiring Grant Hill, the Suns traded away Danny Manning to the Magic to acquire Anfernee Hardaway.
A roster revolving around Hill, Walker, and Hardaway was formed, and the Suns even managed to get two first-round draft picks from the Magic.
With veterans like Kevin Johnson, Steve Smith, and Cliff Robinson on the team, the Suns had considerable strength.
Besides reconstructing the lineup, the Suns also fired coach Danny Ainge, replacing him with former Magic player Sikels.
Sikels, the same age as Gan Guoyang, became the youngest coach in the league and soon showcased his impressive coaching talent with the Suns.
Under his leadership, the Suns became one of the few teams in the league to focus primarily on offense, a tradition of the Phoenix Suns.
They never prioritize defense but, like the scorching sun, always press for attack, attack, and more attack.
As head coach, Sikels chose to let players loose, allowing Hill, Hardaway, and Walker, who are strong in independent offensive capabilities, to fully dominate the ball and score heavily using their individual skills.
With this unique roster and strategy, the Suns secured a place in the fierce Western Conference competition in the early season.
Alongside the Lakers, Kings, Trail Blazers, and Supersonics, the Suns ranked in the top five in the Western Conference, with barely a margin between the standings.
After winning this game, the Suns felt even more confident, and the Western powers realized that no matter how resilient Ah Gan was, his overall decline with the Trail Blazers was an undeniable fact.
The 1999-2000 season, the last season of the 20th century, would be the best—and possibly last—chance to slay the Sun King and reach the pinnacle!